When to Check Your Blood Glucose
While everyone's blood glucose testing schedule is slightly different, many people test at common points during the day. Here are some examples of when people test and the conditions under which most people are advised to test. As always, consult with your health care team about your schedule and directions for testing:
- Fasting blood glucose: In the morning upon waking, before eating or drinking anything; before exercising; and before taking oral antihyperglycemic medications or insulin.
- Pre-meal testing: Some people test their glucose just before eating, especially if they use short-acting insulin or pre-meal pills to control glucose. Work with your health care team to determine how to interpret and use these numbers.
- Postprandial, or after-meal, testing: This is commonly done two hours after a meal. This gives your physician/health care team a good idea of how well your medications are working to control blood glucose.
- Bedtime testing: Work with your health care team to determine what time this test will be on a regular basis.